17.2.12 Scottish Road Traffic Database (STRDb)

The Scottish Roads Traffic Database (SRTDb) is a system which collects, validates, stores and disseminates traffic count data for the trunk road network and limited parts of the non-trunk network. The SRTDb is operated and maintained by Transport Scotland.

Sources:

There are over 1,500 traffic count sites in the system at present, with more likely as additional non-trunk sites are brought into the system. Data is collected via automatic traffic counters located (mainly) throughout the trunk road network.

Most automatic sites are continuously monitored but the extent of available data can vary depending upon the reliability of the count equipment and the data retrieval process. The more modern sites include power and telemetry and as a result data from these sites are in general the most comprehensive and reliable. Whenever a new trunk road scheme is constructed, or maintenance work is undertaken on an existing part of a route, the opportunity is taken to install or upgrade automatic counters as required.

Data Availability:

The earliest data available dates back to 1984. At the earlier automatic sites, data is downloaded and retrieved manually and sent to SRTDb on a monthly basis, whereas at the more modern automatic sites data is sent by telemetry on a daily basis to SRTDb. The available data includes:

• 12 hour manual counts classified by vehicle type for a single day;
• Automatic volumetric (i.e. no class) - on an hourly and daily basis;
• Automatic classified counts - on an hourly and daily basis; and
• Local growth rates (can be calculated).

Format of the Data:

A variety of data formats are available including printouts and electronic files which can be imported into spreadsheets.

Data Use:

The data available from SRTDb can be used to:

• Validate modelled flows;
• Update matrices;
• Estimate local traffic growth;
• Estimate local flow profile data; and
• Factor RSI data.

Data Access:

Access to the data is via the Transport Scotland's traffic count site at: http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/road/traffic-count

Cost:

General traffic count data is provided free of charge. Specific requests for data to Transport Scotland may incur a fee.

Contacts:

Contacts at Transport Scotland are:

Email: info@transportscotland.gsi.gov.uk

Additional Information: The DfT has an extensive database of traffic counts similar to that held by SRTDb. Traffic information is available from http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/roadstraffic/traffic/

In addition, the Highways Agency also has a large amount of traffic data, available from http://www.highways.gov.uk. The DfT can be contacted regarding traffic count information by emailing: roadtraff.stats@dft.gov.uk